Qatar-based IBQ has launched a structured products suite for investors seeking capital protection and diversification into different asset classes.
"We are proud to announce the launch of structured products for our elite banking segment," said Philip King, assistant general manager of retail banking at IBQ. "Interest in these products has been increasing over the past few years and high net worth investors worldwide are now using these investments as way of portfolio diversification."
IBQ announced the addition of structured products to its suite of wealth management products, stressing as a selling point the possibility of earning higher returns than traditional deposits while benefiting from the capital protection offered by the new range of products.
As part of the launch for the bank's elite banking segment, IBQ held a seminar in Doha to introduce investment strategies related to structured investments.
Depending on the type, structured products offer benefits that may include principal protection, enhanced investment returns, reduced volatility or risk and the ability to earn a positive return in low yield or flat equity market environments. The return on structured investments is related to the performance of the underlying asset class and can be negative in cases where the underlying asset does not perform and the product is not capital-protected
Matthijs Westra, investment and structured products manager at IBQ, told SRP that the bank is planning to see how the range performs and may decide to issue more risky products at a later stage. IBQ's structured products range currently offers products linked to local shares.
"These products can be designed to meet the specific financial needs of an investor, offering investment strategies that respond to their specific risk profiles, return requirements and market expectations," he said.